Roulette Intermedium: Vicky Chow plays Tristan Perich, J. Pavone String Ensemble, Joy Guidry

Vicky Chow (piano) (She/Her) Hong Kong/Canadian/American pianist Vicky Chow has been described as “brilliant” (New York Times) and “one of our era’s most brilliant pianists” (Pitchfork). Since joining the Bang on a Can All-Stars in 2009, she has collaborated and worked with composers/artists/ensembles/orchestras such as Tania León, Meredith Monk, Steve Reich, Philip Glass, Terry Riley, George Lewis, John Zorn, Julia Wolfe, David Lang, Michael Gordon, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Sasha Waltz Dance Company, Doug Varone Dance Company, BBC Orchestra, LA Philharmonic, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Symphonietta Riga, Alarm Will Sound, International Contemporary Ensemble, The Knights, Wild Up, Philip Glass Ensemble, Tyshawn Sorey, Andy Akiho, John Zorn, Gong Linna, Kronos Quartet, Longleash Trio, Trinity Choir, Wet Ink Ensemble, Yarn/Wire, Momenta Quartet among others. She has toured to over 40 countries and has performed in various venues including Carnegie Hall (New York) Park Avenue Armory (New York),  Walt Disney Concert Hall (Los Angeles) Muziekgebouw (Amsterdam)  Hong Kong Arts Centre, Barbican Centre (London), Southbank Centre (London), Royal Albert Hall for the BBC Proms  (London), L'auditori (Barcelona), Tivoli Vrendenburg (Utrecht), ZKM (Karlsruhe), City Recital Hall (Sydney) Konzertzāle Latvija (Venxtspil), POLIN Museum (Warsaw) and the Teatro Colón (Buenos Aires) .

She has released over 25 solo and chamber albums on various labels. Her recording of Canadian composer Vince Ho Super Villain Etudes was nominated for a JUNO award. The New Yorker wrote [about her recording of Michael Gordon’s Sonatra], “Sonatra is a milestone of composition, and Vicky Chow’s recording of it is a milestone of pianism." Her album Tristan Perich: Surface Image released in 2013 on New Amsterdam Records was among the top 10 Avant Music albums in Rolling Stone. She recently released Jane Antonia Cornish: Sierra ("Cornish’s landscape is lush, sun-baked, and a little hazy in the afternoon light, and Chow is adept and adroit at bringing out the glistening imagery painted in each track, with synesthetic titles like Sky, Ocean, Sunglitter, and Last Light." - VAN, "a reflective and subtle work, Sky for multiple layers of pianos. . . played by the versatile and talented Vicky Chow" - WNYC New Sounds) as well as Cassie Wieland: HYMN, both on the Cantaloupe label.  In October 2022, she  released Philip Glass: Piano Etudes Book 1 in celebration of Mr. Glass's 85th birthday which Mr. Glass says, ""It's a highly dynamic and expressive performance. There's a certain energy that is uniquely hers."". Her other recordings can be found on Nonesuch, New Amsterdam, Tzadik, Innova, among others.

Originally from Vancouver, Canada, she is based in Brooklyn, NY. She serves as faculty at the Bang on a Can Summer Institute, the Nief-Norf Summer Festival, and has been on faculty at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. She is on the Board of Advisors for Composers Now, and is also a mentor at The Juilliard School. A graduate of The Juilliard School (B.M. '05, M.M. '07 Piano Performance) and The Manhattan School of Music (M.M. Contemporary Performance '09) Ms. Chow is a Yamaha Artist. 

Tristan Perich's work is inspired by the aesthetic simplicity of math, physics and code. The WIRE Magazine describes his compositions as "an austere meeting of electronic and organic."

His 2004 release, 1-Bit Music, was the first album ever released as a microchip, programmed to synthesize his electronic composition live. The follow-up release, 1-Bit Symphony, was called "sublime" (New York Press), and the Wall Street Journal said "its oscillations have an intense, hypnotic force and a surprising emotional depth." More recently, Drift Multiply (Nonesuch, New Amsterdam), for 50 violins and 50 speakers, was described by the New York Times as "a constantly evolving landscape where sounds coalesce and prism, where the violins both pull into focus and blur into a soothing ether."

Perich’s work coupling 1-bit electronics with traditional forms in both music and visual art has been presented around the world, from Sonar and Ars Electronica to the Museum of Modern Art and bitforms gallery. He has been commissioned by the LA Philharmonic, So Percussion, Yarn/Wire and more. He received a 2011 New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship. He was a featured artist at Sonár 2010 in Barcelona, and in 2009, Austria’s Prix Ars Electronica awarded him the Award of Distinction for his composition Active Field (for ten violins and ten-channel 1-bit music). Rhizome awarded him a 2010 commission for an audio installation with 1,500 speakers. Perich was artist in residence at Issue Project Room in 2008, at Mikrogalleriet in Copenhagen in 2010, and at the Addison Gallery in Andover, MA and Harvestworks in New York in Fall 2010. His work has received support from New York State Council on the Arts, the American Music Center, Meet the Composer and others. He has spoken about his work and taught workshops around the world. Perich studied math, music and computer science at Columbia University and received a masters in art, music and electronics at Interactive Telecommunications Program at Tisch School of the Arts, NYU.

Tristan Perich’s first recording project for Erased Tapes, Open Symmetry, was released in June 2024.

As an instrumentalist and composer, Jessica Pavone explores music’s tactile and sensory elements as a vibration-based medium. Inspired by processes centered on intuition and instinct, she channels these ideas into compositions by focusing on how music feels when played and heard, exploring the effects of sonic vibrations on the body, and weaving her experiences as an instrumentalist into works that transcend time. Developing original music for solo viola has been an integral part of her practice. The structured yet indeterminate pieces stem from an interest in long tones, repetition, and sympathetic vibration. In 2017, Pavone created the J. Pavone String Ensemble as an expansion of this solo viola repertoire, which informs her written practice and plays a vital role to her approach to ensemble composition.

The pieces for the group borrow from and expand upon traditional music notation, alternating between metered and duration-based sections, and improvised and notated instructions. The scores prioritize an intentionally fluid style that allows musicians to sculpt aspects of the pieces by carving out open, liminal spaces, which provide freedom for reinterpretation, making each performance unique. Pavone participates as a violist in her ensembles, whose approach focuses on a vision of collective improvisation that emphasizes a collaboratively woven fabric, in contrast to the traditional improvisatory method that prizes the showmanship of the soloist.

The group has performed at the Suoni Per Il Popolo Festival (Montreal), Bang on a Can Long Play Festival (NYC), The Thing in the Spring (Keene), (Logan Center for the Arts (Chicago), Dartmouth New Music Festival (Hanover), the Stone and the DiMenna Center for Classical Music (Manhattan), NYC Winter Jazzfest, Roulette and ISSUE Project Room (Brooklyn), Firehouse12 (New Haven), Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center (Asheville), the Garner Arts Center (Garnerville, NY), and The Rotunda (Philadelphia).

Four studio albums have been released to critical acclaim from The Wire, The New Yorker, Pitchfork, JazzTimes, and San Francisco Classical Voice. Brad Cohen of Jazz Times described her as "a free-thinker who can't be pigeonholed." In 2019, the string ensemble's debut album, Brick and Mortar, was hailed by the Chicago Reader's Peter Margasak as "the most assured, bracing work of Pavone's career." Astral Spirits Records released their second, Lost and Found, in 2020 to critical acclaim from publications such as; The Wire, The New Yorker, NYC Jazz Record, NPR, and Jazzwise. Bandcamp Daily named it a "Best Contemporary Albums" of 2020 and 20. Chris Ingalls from Pop Matters described their music as "too stunning to lump into genres."

Joy Guidry is a bassoonist, versatile improviser, performance artist, and composer of experimental, daring new works that embody a deep love of storytelling; Joy’s music channels their inner child in honor of their ancestors and predecessors. The San Diego Tribune has hailed their performances as “lyrical and haunting…hair-raising and unsettling.” Joy was born in Houston, Texas, into a creative family that has shaped who she is today. Joy holds a bachelor’s degree in Bassoon Performance from the Peabody Conservatory and a Graduate Performance Diploma from the Mannes School of Music. She has presented her original work at The Whitney Museum for American Art, Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, The Kitchen, Redcat, among many other venues. Joy has been commissioned by The National Sawdust, Long Beach Opera, JACK Quartet, Gaudeamus Festival, and the I&I Foundation. Joy has been featured in festivals, including the La Biennale di Venezia, A’Larme Festival, Cologne Jazz Week, Angel City Jazz Festival, Spoleto Festival USA, Big Ears Festival, and many more. In addition, Joy Guidry is the winner of the 2021 Berlin Prize for Young Artists. Joy Is currently playing on a Heckel Bassoon number 6101.

Bryant Park lends out hundreds of free blankets on a first-come, first-served basis, or bring your own cotton or fleece blanket. To protect the lawn, please do not sit on waterproof materials such as plastic tarps, yoga mats, or inflatable chairs. 

Take a seat in one of the pre-set chairs on the lawn or grab a chair from the gravel. You can use a chair anywhere in the park except for the center lawn "blanket zone". 

Bring your own picnic or purchase food and drinks from tents on the east side of the lawn. Attendees can enjoy cuisine from the five boroughs with a rotating line-up of artisanal vendors curated by Hester Street Fair.

Stout NYC also offers giant pretzels, gourmet popcorn and other light bites as well as a selection of beer, wine, and non-alcoholic beverages for purchase.

Visit the Bryant Park Shop tent for exclusive Picnic Performances merchandise and more!

Find a parachute, hula hoops, and more fun on the east side of the lawn at select events. 

Dogs are welcome on the gravel and bluestone, but not on the lawn.

Performances are cancelled when it is unsafe to be outdoors. In some cases, the lawn may be too wet to open but the performance may continue. Follow @bryantparknyc on Twitter and Instagram for day-of event updates. You can also check the lawn status on the bryantpark.org homepage.